


The Measure of a Man

by bearfeathers



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Gen, Tahiti is a Magical Place
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-11-22
Updated: 2013-11-22
Packaged: 2018-01-02 08:24:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,957
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1054616
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bearfeathers/pseuds/bearfeathers
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>They say the ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. Upon uncovering a lie, Thor seeks to set it to rights, but the path to doing so may be more difficult than he'd first believed.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Measure of a Man

There are few things that can escape Heimdall’s gaze. When Thor had returned from Midgard, dragging along a shackled and muzzled Loki, that the Prince sought his council did not surprise him. Nor did it surprise him when Thor requested that Heimdall pay special attention to a handful of individuals—and one individual in particular. Of course, he does as requested and in the beginning, there is nothing urgent to report. (This does not stop Thor’s frequent visits.)

Until, one day, there _is_ something to report. An anomaly that had escaped his notice. Knowing Thor as he does, Heimdall is certain of the course of action the Prince will take when he learns of this, just as he is certain the King will disapprove. By all rights, his loyalty is to his King first.

And yet.

* * *

“You have a visitor,” Maria says.

Nick Fury narrows his lone eye at the Deputy Director as she joins him in the halls.

“I don’t have _visitors_ ,” he retorts.

“Sir, with all due respect, you might want to consider having this one,” Maria counters. “He’s in your office. Be glad I was able to convince him to take a seat and wait for you.”

Without bothering to hide his scowl, he begins the trek towards his office. Really, the least she could have done was say who he’d have the joy of entertaining this fine day, but apparently that wasn’t on Maria Hill’s agenda. Still, it can really only be one of a select number of people. Which means it’s Tony Stark with a stick up his ass or Captain America with an even _bigger_ stick up his ass or something of the kind.

He isn’t wrong.

Still, walking into his office and finding a very agitated Thor—who only seems to grow more agitated in his presence—is not how he wanted to start his Monday morning. The God of Thunder rises from his seat, leveling him with a glare that would reduce lesser men to ash.

“Didn’t know you were back planetside,” Nick states striding towards his desk. “They fix that bridge of yours?”

“I did not come here for idle chatter,” Thor responds, his tone low and dangerous.

“Alright,” Nick says easily enough. He takes a seat and leans forward, his hands folded before him on his desk. “Then enlighten me:  what _did_ you come here for?”

“I came here for the truth,” Thor states. “You _lied_ not only to myself, but to my companions as well, and that will not be allowed to pass without retribution.”

“You’re gonna have to be more specific,” Nick drawls. “I head an organization of spies. Lying’s kind of my thing.”

Nick doesn’t so much as bat an eye when Thor swings his hammer and blows the chair he’d previously been seated in clear across the room. Over the intercom, Maria’s voice sharply asks if security is needed but he dismisses her.

“ _Do not test me_ ,” Thor growls. “I have had enough of your games. I know that the Son of Coul yet lives and if you value my continued allegiance then you will take me to him. _Now_.”

That does get a reaction out of Nick. He’d hardly expected any of them to discover his little white lie—well, maybe Stark at some future date, because he has a habit of sticking his nose everywhere except where it belongs—and certainly not so soon. He could try to lie his way out of it, claim that Thor has no idea what he’s talking about, but he knows it’s pointless. Thor won’t budge on this one. So Nick sighs and shakes his head and stares up at the man who looks prepared to knock the director’s head clean off his shoulders if he thinks it’ll get him anywhere.

“How much do you know?” Nick asks.

Thor’s temper seems to dampen, if only slightly. “I know only what Heimdall was able to relate to me. Upon my return with Loki, I requested that he pay close attention to a specific few here on Earth. He saw you at the bedside of the Son of Coul and said that he was alive but would not wake.”

“That’s about the long and short of it,” Nick replies. “It wasn’t a total lie. When I said they called it, they’d called it. Officially, Coulson bled out against that wall where your brother left him.”

He pauses just long enough to watch the guilt settle in. It’s a cheap shot, sure, but he needs even out the playing field, just a little. Because he’s done something wrong, but he’s not the only one at fault. A large part of the reason Phil is in that bed is because of his own stupid idealism, but they are all equal parts guilty of helping to put him there. That’s something none of them would deny.

“What I didn’t say was that they managed to revive him following that announcement. Our medical staff took him into surgery and we lost him a few more times along the way,” Nick continues. “Every time, I was sure that was it. That the next time they called it would be the last time. But, in his continuing quest to prove me wrong, he lived up to his reputation as a tenacious bastard and managed to cling on. Thing is, he’d suffered so much trauma by that point that he slipped into a coma.”

“Which he hasn’t woken from,” Thor concludes.

“We’ve tried everything,” Nick admits, spreading his hands before him. “Shit, I’ve even ignored his goddamn will and kept him attached to those machines thinking he might prove me wrong one more time. So far, it hasn’t happened, and from what they tell me it might never happen.”

Thor is silent at that. It’s an interesting contrast to his righteous anger not five minutes ago.

“I wish to see him,” Thor declares.

“You might not like what you see,” Fury warns him.

“I wish to see him,” Thor repeats, his tone that much firmer.

Knowing they’re not getting around this any other way, Nick just nods and rises from his seat. When he wordlessly walks towards the door, Thor follows.

* * *

Aside from the man in the bed before him, Thor is alone in the dimly lit hospital room and finds himself relieved that Fury had thought to grant him some privacy. In truth, he doesn’t know Phil Coulson very well, but what he’d seen of the man was enough to say that he deserved better than this. The agent is pale and unmoving, his chest rising and falling with breaths forced into his lungs with mechanical precision via the tube in his throat.

Thor is conflicted. Half of him is elated at the knowledge that the man is still alive, for with that comes the chance that he might yet wake. The other half of him aches to see the agent in such a state, robbed of the heroic death he deserved.

Either way, a wrong needs to be righted.

“Like I said, we’ve tried just about everything we could.”

He turns his head at the sound of the director’s voice.

“I would like to take him to Asgard,” Thor informs him.

“Excuse me?” Fury says questioningly, prompting for more information.

“Skilled though they may be, your healers can only do so much,” Thor explains. “There are healers on my world who can do far more for him than you could ever hope to. As you’ve said, you have exhausted all your options.”

“We have,” Fury says, not disagreeing with him. He gestures towards Phil’s prone form. “You do understand that disconnecting him from all of these machines will kill him, right?”

Thor shakes his head. “The journey will be swift and I have the most gifted healer I know awaiting our arrival.”

“So they know you’re bringing him, then,” Fury prods.

Thor hesitates. “Not precisely.”

“Thor,” Fury says in warning.

“Those who would need to be immediately alerted have been called upon,” Thor says. “I will have to explain to my father why I have brought him, but I believe the task will be much easier if I have the Son of Coul with me at that junction. I promise you, no further harm will come to him.”

Fury doesn’t seem pleased with the idea and Thor can hardly blame him. It’s a rather great leap of faith to take with so little to hold onto. But he can see that the director knows that there is simply no other way; there are no other options left to him.

“Alright. But I want you to understand one thing,” Fury says. “If anything happens to him—and I mean _anything—_ then I don’t care what planet or realm you’re on, I _will_ find you and when I do, you’ll wish you’d never even _thought_ of coming here. Understand?”

“I would expect nothing less,” Thor says.

Fury sighs and shakes his head. “Can’t believe I fucking agreed to this.”

Thor stands back alongside Fury as the medical staff is called in, offering perplexed looks but no objection under the director’s instructions and stern gaze. While Thor is glad he didn’t have to waste a great deal of time convincing Fury to allow him to take his agent, he is still guarded. A lie as great as this is not forgiven so easily, though he understands why it was told in the first place and why it has been maintained since. A great deal more work will have to be done before Thor will feel he can trust the man—especially considering his fellow Avengers know nothing of this—but this is a start.

“Remember what I said,” Fury says in warning as Thor steps forward.

“I will not forget your promise,” Thor says, scooping Phil up as gently as possible. “Just as I hope you will not forget mine.”

“Now, how the fuck are you gonna get—“

He doesn’t hear the rest of whatever the director had planned on saying—and frankly it’s just as well, as he’d grown somewhat tired of the man’s presence—as Heimdall quickly retrieves them. The journey is as short as he’d promised it would be, though it’s something of a shame that the agent is not awake to witness it.

Thor lands in a crouch and hardly has the chance to open his mouth before Frigga is upon them. Gratitude washes over him as his mother doesn’t even question what needs to be done, just sets to work as quickly as possible, evidently as aware as he is that time is of the essence. It’s not even half a minute later that he hears a sudden intake of breath in what has to be the first unassisted breath the agent has drawn in quite some time.

“At the very least he’ll be able to breathe on his own now,” Frigga comments, her hand lying flat in the center of Phil’s chest. “The damage is quite extensive. This was Loki’s doing?”

“Aye,” Thor responds with a nod. He looks to his mother questioningly. “Can he be helped?”

“Perhaps,” Frigga answers guardedly. “I will do what I can, but first, you must see your father.”

Thor nods dutifully, but isn’t looking forward to it. Frigga pats his arm lovingly, offering him a reassuring smile.

“Just explain to him as you explained to me,” she tells him. “Your Son of Coul is here already and if you offer your reasons, I’m certain your father will not see fit to turn him away.”

“Let us hope not,” Thor says.

Bartering with Fury had gone easier than he’d anticipated, but something tells him that his father will not be quite so easily swayed.


End file.
